Kite



Ot. 13, 1936. L, HOPKINS ET AL 2,057,148

KITE

Filed Jan. 18, 1936 INVENTORS Bmam Mfw @Ma/ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 13, 1936 UNITED STATES KITE Leonard Hopkins, Holyoke,VandGreorge E. Rattman, South Hadley Falls, Mass.

Application January 18, 1936, Serial No. 59,744

8 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in kites and is directed moreparticularly to improvements in kites called box-kites.

Certain novel features of the invention are directed to the provision ofa kite having corner and diagonal struts and bands which are constructedand arranged to facilitate the secure assembling thereof without thenecessity of fasteners, adhesives, or the like thus facilitating theready assembling and disassembling for future use and this isaccomplished by interweaving the struts and bands.

It is one object of the invention to provide a boX kite the bands ofwhich are formed with air channels or passageways which contribute tothe ease and facility with Which the kite may be flown.

Various novel objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentfrom the following description thereof, reference being had to theaccompanying drawing wherein:

Figs. 1 and 2 .are plan and side elevational views respectively showinga kite embodying the novel features of the invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective View showing a corner strut and transverse strutdisassembled;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of one of the bands of the kite shown in Figs. 1and 2;

Fig. 5 is a large scale fragmentary plan View showing how one end of acorner Strut is associated with one of the bands;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view showing how the struts andbands are assembled; and

Fig. 7 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 1-1 of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, the invention will be fullydescribed.

The kite 2 of the invention in a general way consists of longitudinalcorner struts 4, transverse diagonal bracing struts 6 and upper andlower` bands 8 all of which are constructed in a novel manner tofacilitate assembling or setting up of the parts as well as knockingthem down.

The bands 8 are provided with longitudinally spaced sets or rows ofopenings each of which set includes slits or slots I@ and a centralopening I2 as shown in Fig. 4. The bands 4 are of pliable material suchas fabric or paper and when assembled with the other parts the oppositeends are disposed in overlapping relation with the openings of theendmost sets thereof in register with one another.

Preferably the bands are provided with transverse air channels and thismay be accomplished by employing two plies of paper such as I4 and i6 asshown in .section in Fig. 7. One of the plies such as I6 is luted orVcorrugated and is suitably secured to a backing so as to form channels18 therebetween. Y

The channels are preferably arranged transversely of the bands so as tobe` disposed longitudinally of the kite when the parts are assembled. Y

The longitudinal corner 4 struts are preferably of light wood Aor thelike and have sockets such as 2i) for intertting with similar sockets 22in the ends of the diagonal struts 6, all as shown in Fig. 3.

Inrassembling the par-ts, the end portions of the struts 4 are assembledwith the strips as in Figs. 5 and 6. That is, therends of the struts areinsertedlin 4the slits l0 of the bands .8 so that there are lparts ofthe struts outside the bands and adjacent parts inside vthe bands withthe sockets 20 thereof inthe openings l2 of the bands. In this way theends Aof the struts are interwoven with the bands. The ends Aof thebands are arranged in -overlapping relation so that the openings thereofYare in register and one of the struts 4 then functions to hold thevends of the bands together as in Fig. 6.

With the ends of the struts thus interwoven with the bands and the bandsheld in overlapping relation, the diagonal struts 4 have their endsextending through the openings I2 in the bands and interlocked with thestruts 4 as in Fig. 6 with the struts.

The struts 4 are more or less exible so as to be readily slipped intoplace and serve to tension the bands which have their ends held againstseparation.

As will be observed, the bands, diagonal struts and corner struts areconstructed and arranged so that the bands and transverse struts areheld against movements longitudinally relative to struts 4 while struts6 brace and hold the parts in set up relation.

While We have described the invention in great detail and with respectto a preferred form thereof, it is not desired to be limited theretosince many changes and modifications may be made therein Withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. What it is desiredto claim and secure by Letters Patent of the United States 1. A kitecomprising in combination, longitudinal corner struts, bands havinglongitudinally spaced sets of transversely spaced openings, oppositeends of said struts extending through certain openings of said sets, andcross struts ex- 55 bands having sets of spaced openings with the endsof the corner struts extending therethroughv with portions of said strutinside said band and other portions outside thereof whileY the ends ofthe bands are overlapped, and the said bands provided with otheropenings through which the ends of the transverse struts extend and thesaid corner and longitudinal strutsV and transverse struts provided withengageable parts.

4. A box kite `comprising in combination, relatively narrow upper andlower bands having their opposite ends in overlapped relation `andprovided with longitudinally spaced sets of spaced openings with theopenings of the endmost set of the bands in register, longitudinalcorner struts each having their ends inserted in certain of the openingsof the sets with portions of said ends inside and other portions outsidesaid bands and the said bands being held together by Said ends, anddiagonal wedging struts having opposite ends extending through certainopenings of the bands into engagement with the corner struts.

V5. A box kite comprising in combination, relatively narrow upper andlower bands having their of the Vbands in register, longitudinal cornerstruts each having their ends inserted in certain of the openings of thesets with portions of said ends inside and other portions outside saidbands and the said bands being held together by said ends,

diagonal wedging struts having opposite ends extending through certainopenings of the bands into engagement Ywith the corner struts, andlocking means associated with said corner and diagonal struts wherebythe bands and strutsy are heldV against shifting movements.

6. A box kite comprising in combination, relatively narrow upper andlower bands having their opposite ends in overlapped relation andYprovided with longitudinally spaced sets of spaced openings with theopenings of the endmost set of the bands in register, longitudinalcorner struts each having their ends inserted in certain of the openingsof the sets with portions of said ends inside and other portions outsidesaid bands and the said bands being held together by said ends, diagonalWedging struts having opposite ends extending through certain openingsof the bands into engagement with the corner struts, the said bandsbeing provided with channels disposed transversely thereof and parallelto said corner struts.

7. A knock-down kite comprising in combination, upper and lower bandshaving longitudinally spaced sets of spaced openings, longitudinalcorner struts adapted to have their end portions inserted in certainopenings of the sets whereby the ends of the strips may be overlappedwith the end of a strut in the sets of openings adjacent the ends of thebands to secure the ends of the bands together, said transverse strutsadapted to have their ends inserted in other openings of said sets toengage the longitudinal struts and brace them in kite-forming relation.

8. A box kite comprising in combination, a set of longitudinal cornerstruts and bands having opposite ends overlapped and disposed atopposite ends of the struts, the ends of the struts being interwovenwith the bands and holding the ends ofthe bands in overlapped relation,and transverse bracing struts at opposite ends of the kite extendingdiagonally between opposite corner struts.

LEONARD HOPKINS. GEORGE E. RATTMAN.

